DEVELOP3D | All contentDEVELOP3D : Technology for the product lifecycle2015-03-03T16:56:12ZCopyright (c) 2015, Stephen HolmesExpressionEnginetag:develop3d.com,2015:03:03Desktop Factory: What’s out there and what’s comingtag:develop3d.com,2015:hardware/7.54912015-03-03T13:50:11Z2015-03-03T16:56:12ZDEVELOP3DAs well as the Roland MonoFab ARM-10 3D Printer and SRM-20 CNC Mill, what else is out there to transform your desktop into space of real world prototyping and manufacturing?

3D Printers

Funded through Kickstarter, but heavily VC backed, FormLabs reignited the interest in stereolithography. When we looked at the Form 1+, we came away impressed by the build results, the reliability and the affordability. Expect this company to do very interesting things in the coming years — killer machine and killer usability with a decent sized build platform. Exactly what a design office needs.

Considering it invented the stereolithography process, 3D Systems has been slow to release a lower cost unit. The ProJet 1200 is a compact unit, built initially for the jewellery and small intricate component markets, where investment casting is common. New materials options have also opened up its use potential. Let’s hope we see more from 3D Systems in this vein.

DWS or Digital Wax Systems has made a name for itself by building ultra high resolution machines for specialised industries, from jewellery to medical, wherever resolution is key. Its master of materials also shows in the forthcoming XFAB machine, aimed at the desktop market. Working area will be
180×180mm and the results look impeccable.

Based on a DLP projection build process, Autodesk’s Ember printer is at the beta test stage as units roll out to users that have paid up in advance. Featuring 25 micron build layers and a fast build process, it’s looking good for Autodesk’s first foray into 3D printing hardware. DEVELOP3D has an early build unit and will be reporting in the coming months on how things are progressing.

With the experience Inventables has gained from its ShapeOko machines, the company has launched the Carvey on Kickstarter. It gained a lot of exposure — like that typically associated with a 3D printer. With a larger build volume (300 x 200 x 70mm), its styling was done by Minimal, though how it’ll look covered in model board dust is another matter. Pricing again around the $1,999 mark.

Favourites of the larger MakerSpace or hackerSpace, Shopbot has built a name for itself as a provider of larger format CNC routers over the last few years. The smallest product in its range is the ShopBot Desktop. Offering a 610 x 460 x 89mm build volume, it’s a smaller form factor machine that could be useful in the prototyping process.

While the other machines are definitely at the desktop, Muncaster technology is a new entrant into the market aiming between the desktop machines and entry level, full scale, CNC machines. Its products can be placed in the office or workshop environment with some serious machining capability, including automatic tool changers, 5 axis options. It’s launching at DEVELOP3D Live 2015 too!

]]>Review: Roland MonoFabtag:develop3d.com,2015:reviews/5.54872015-03-03T12:39:35Z2015-03-03T14:09:37ZDEVELOP3DNamed after the Japanese concept of monozukuri (meaning: art, science and craft of making things), Roland’s MonoFab combines 3D printing with CNC machining in two matched devices. Al Dean puts Roland’s latest offering through its paces

I doubt that there’s anyone that really needs an introduction to Roland and its range of hardware that supports design and engineering.

If you’ve been through the UK’s design and engineering education system, then the chances are that you’ll have come across its machines at some point.

The Roland MonoFab machines-two manufacturing or prototyping methods in a matched pair of devices

Roland’s history is, of course, in the wide format printing game, which led the company to start to experiment with using the same technology to cut material, rather than just to print on sheets.

Since then, the company has been, albeit quietly, providing 100,000s of units that cover a range of capabilities. From CNC mills of varying sizes to laser scanning devices, and sometimes both combined into a single unit.

With this success, it was perhaps perplexing that the company had, until recently, avoided the 3D printing game.
After all, if you have that amount of customers, that amount of knowledge in numerically controlled machines and that reputation, then it would make sense.

Enter the MonoFab

Despite this, it came as a surprise in the middle of 2014 when Roland finally launched its first 3D printing device.

What was interesting was that it didn’t just release a 3D printer, but rather a brace of devices — the MonoFab products. This is comprised of two machines. The first, the ARM-10, is a Digital Light Processing (DLP) stereolithography 3D printer.

For those that are unfamiliar with this technology, it uses a small DLP chip from Texas Instruments. These are commonly found in today’s projectors and are compromised of a matrix of very small scale reflectors (up to 8 million of them) and a light source. These mirrors work to represent pixels on a screen.

In consumer units, visible light is used to display whatever you’re trying to project on a surface. In this case, the light source is UV light and this cures layers of resin held between a print tray and a build platform.

Interestingly, while the term UV curable resin is commonplace, the pedants out there will know that most machines of this class use violet light (rather than ultra violet) in the 405nm wavelength band. But we’ll get onto the specifics of how it works shortly.

Alongside the ARM-10, the MonoFab range also includes a matched CNC machine. This takes Roland’s mastery of the desktop CNC game and packages it up into a nice little unit that matches the 3D printer in terms of both size and styling.

So, in this review we’ll look at the two machines separately, then wrap things up at the end to see what you get for your money and where it can fit into your workflow.

The ARM-10 3D printer

The Roland ARM-10’s build method. UV light is projected from beneath, through the build tray to solidify the model onto the platform above

As we’ve discussed, the ARM-10 uses DLP driven stereolithography.

Similarly to many other machines in its class, this builds from the bottom up. The projection unit is in the base of the unit and projects the light up, through a transparent build tray to solidify a layer of material onto the build platform, which gradually increments up in the Z axis.

As a unit, it’s clear that you’re dealing with the build quality that you’d expect from Roland. Getting the thing out of the box is painless and it’s about ready to go as soon as you’ve done it.

About the size of an office desktop laser printer, it looks pretty slick. The orange is, of course, predominant as it’s required to block out any stray light that would otherwise cure the resin in the tray before you’ve even printed anything.

In terms of initial set-up, Roland has an interesting set of software and online support tools. All of the drivers can be downloaded by logging into its support tool. This lets you then download the software needed to set-up your print jobs.

While we had a few glitches, these were quickly resolved and we were up and running in about 20 minutes.

The machine connects using a standard USB cable and the usual power adapter. It’s worth noting at this point that before you start printing, you need to ensure that the workstation you have it plugged into has the correct power settings.

Essentially, the ARM-10 runs as a secondary monitor. Because of this, you need to ensure that any power savings or monitor shut off settings are turned off in your power settings. It’ll also only run on a Windows box.

Once done, you’re about ready to get set-up for your first print.

There are three key things to do before you start printing. The first is to install the build tray. You’ll notice that despite the build envelope of 130x70x70mm, the resin tray is in fact 130x130mm. We’ll get onto why that’s interesting later.

You loosen off the finger clamps, slide in the resin tray then lock it down again.

Interestingly, the machine includes a protective shutter that only disengages when you’ve installed the resin tray.

This will save that resin getting into the projection gubbins and save you a lot of grief (other machine manufacturers should take note of this). You then add in the resin from the supplied bottles. There are handy marks on the side of the build tray to make sure you don’t over fill it.

The final step is to calibrate the build platform. You do this by loosening four bolts with an Allen key, hit Calibrate in the software and it’ll move into position. You then need to push the print head down into tray so that it’s flush with the bottom of the tray.

Now tighten up those bolts. Once done, you’re ready to rock and roll and get your first print underway and, as ever, you need to jump into the supplied software to do it.

Set-up software

Roland has always had interesting software and the supplied software with the ARM-10 is equally as interesting.

It steps through the workflow, beginning with import and healing of the STL data. It’ll place your parts into the build platform on screen and you can then adjust and position them, add supports and define the print parameters.

Now, it’s here that there are some curiousities. The software doesn’t give you any automated tools to assist with the correct orientation of your parts. In some respects, this is good for those looking to experiment and that have a working knowledge of how these machines work.

However, if you don’t, or you just want to get it working, you’re probably stumped.

The reason for this is that these machines have some peculiarities centred on how you need to orient the parts. Typically, you need to have them at 45 degrees to the horizontal to avoid building heavy cross sections. It’s pretty trivial to do this manually, but some automation would be useful right at this point.

Once your parts are arranged, you then add in the supports for the parts. Roland’s support structures (compared to other SLA system software) appear heavy. And yes, they do use more materials, but the results that we got with the machine indicated that heavier supports mean that you’re less likely to have a failed build — and in the professional space, that’s essential.

You then define the build parameters for the print job. The ARM-10 is supplied with just a single material. It’s a standard clear resin as you can see in the above image.

What’s interesting is that Roland has exposed all of the settings for the process so while you can dive in and build parts, you can also experiment with other resins from the burgeoning market for such materials.

When it’s ready, you hit go. The machine then sends the layer data to the machine and starts to build. It runs very quietly as the whole unit is pretty solid. There’s very little in the way of sheet metal (a problem with the cheaper end of the spectrum machines in this class) and because of the build process, there are very few moving parts, apart from the Z axis control for the build platform.

Results

The SRM-20’s build plate is usefully large and lets you rip through softer materials. It won’t do metals, but almost anything else is possible. It’s just a shame it doesn’t come with t-slots for better workpiece holding

Once the build has completed, you’ll find a message on your workstation and see your build platform up in the air inside the machine.

To remove, it’s simply a case of flipping up the lid, undoing the large thumb wheel and removing the build platform (don’t forget to remove the lid when that’s done).

The ARM-10 is supplied with a nice finishing set-up. There’s an injection moulded breakout tray with a pocket to fit the build platform into. You then lever the part off with the supplied scraper, and pop into a tub of isopropyl alcohol.

Give it a swirl around, then move the part to the second tub for a further rinse. It’s tempting to remove the supports, but let the part rinse and get all the excess resin off before you start clean up.

Next steps are that you can dive in and break out your part (Roland’s supports break away nicely, even if they are a little heavy). You’re supplied with a pair of flat bladed snips, but I’m sure you’ve all got your own personal set of tools for cleaning up 3D prints.

Once done, the parts need a bit more curing. We discussed the use of a UV sterliser in our FormLabs Form 1+review back in October 2014 and the same stands here. If you don’t want to go that route, then a period in the sun will do the trick, just more slowly.

The resultant parts from the ARM-10 are just as you’d expect. The models are clean, crisp and precise. You have full control over your layer thickness, but it’s quoted as running as fine as 0.01mm. Build times will, of course, increase at that level, but a balance can be struck between build time and resolution as you see fit.

One thing we briefly mentioned was the double size build tray. This is a curiousity in this machine. While the build platform (in terms of horizontal size) is 130x70, the resin tray is in fact 130x130mm.

Why is that the case? I’m not entirely sure, but what it does mean is that when the PDMS layer on the resin tray starts to cloud through exposure to the UV light, which is inevitable on all similar machines, you can take it out and rotate it 180 degrees and get another set of builds out of the same tray.

As I mentioned, I’m not too sure why Roland has done it. A full build platform might have been more useful and would give similar build capability as the Form 1+. It certainly gives you a little extra bang for the buck on consumable items.

The Roland SRM-20 CNC mill

Alongside the 3D printer, the other half of this rather impressive duo is the SRM-20.

The unit is a lot heavier than the 3D printer, but packed into a similarly sized package. Again, the device is set-up and installed using Roland’s support software.

Whereas the ARM-10 uses a single application for set-up, with the SRM-20, you have a number of different options.

The majority of work will be done through Roland’s ever present Modela Player application. This gives a backed in set of tools that allows you to import part geometry, arrange it and then program the tool-paths you need to cut the material.

The whole thing is geared up for the prototyping process, supports the use of tabs (to retain components) and even steps into double sided cutting.

Alongside this, there are also a few other applications, that range from tools for designing engraved forms from scratch to ClickMill, which lets you quickly define a toolpath and have it cut on the machine — ideal for facing off or trimming blank material.

Another key component in the software stack is the Controller application. This works just like your Siemens or Heidenhain hardware controllers and is the point where you load the G-code, set-up datums and origins as well as have full real time manual control over spindle and feed rates.

The latter is essential when you’re fine tuning the best parameters for your cutters, the material and the machine. Ease the feed-rate off as you start, then ramp things up once confident you’re not going to rip the machine apart at its, albeit well constructed, seams.

What’s also interesting is that while the Roland software tends to use its own proprietary RML-1 language, it’s also perfectly capable of running ‘standard’ G-code. This means that, given an appropriate post processor, you can use pretty much any CAM software you want or have access to.

We did some trials with Autodesk’s Fusion 360 CAM tools (see workflow below).

To enlarge image click here

After a little bit of tinkering with origins and ensuring they matched up in both the CAM system and in the controller software, it worked a treat. The benefit we found was that you end up with much more intelligence and efficiency in your toolpaths (meaning quicker cycles), and have more control over collision checking (assuming you have put the work into the tooling libraries).

Stock set-up

Once you have your tool-paths ready, you then need to set-up the machine. This, of course, is a two step process — the material on the table and the cutter in the chuck.

The SRM-20 features a pretty good sized table and you have a number of options for fixing your material to it. The machine comes with double sided adhesive tape and this works for most materials, assuming that you’re not running it too hard.

I’m sure someone will adapt the steel table (which fixes in place with four thumbscrews) to have a low-profile vice — and if they don’t, they should.

If you’re looking to get into double or multi-sided cutting, then the device is also supplied with small pins that, with some tricks detailed in the manual (in fact, the subject has its own PDF manual), allow you to locate and subsequently flip the workpiece into the same position.

If you want to run smaller cutters, then there are also 3, 4, 5 and 3.175mm collets available for £40 a piece. Into this collet, you insert the cutter, set the depth and tighten up with a small grub screw (and yes, they supply a couple of spares thankfully). You then screw that into the spindle and nip up tight with a spanner.

Here, it’s worth noting that there are two possible positions for the spindle. One gives you full height, but the other lets you drop the spindle (and hence the cutter) if you want to run things more tightly.

It would be nice if you could acquire spare collets to hold your eventual range of cutters, to save on removing the whole shebang, setting the length and such.

First cut is the deepest When that’s all done, you need to set the datum/origins for the toolpaths you want to run. This is done in the controller software and by moving the spindle to the correct X and Y positions, then also setting the Z origin separately.

You then load in the G-code (you can batch load these, assuming you’re running multiples with the same cutter) and set the machine running. Again, just as with the ARM-10, you need to ensure that your workstation is running without those pesky power saving options — as it’s streaming in the G-code as it cuts.

The cutting speeds and feeds are completely dependent on the material you’re working with and your cutter.

You’ll also need to bear in mind step down when you’re working with hard materials. With foam and softer materials, you can really let this thing rip and you can see your part emerging from the swarf and dust as it removes material.

Once your first set of tool-paths is complete, it’s then time to switch your cutter. You need to go through the same set-up process. Assuming that you’re running with the same origins, it’s essential that you get the cutter lengths correct.

Conclusion

It’s hard to find fault with this pair of Roland machines.

They’re built like tanks, they’re reliable and they work perfectly once you’ve, as with all machines, learned the ins and outs of the process.

With the ARM-10 3D printer, this is always down to ensuring that you’ve got adequate support for your parts - the rest is pretty reliable. With the SRM-20 CNC, it’s down to good tool-paths and matching your cutting settings with the material.

Once done, both will give you good results. If I had criticisms of both, it would be the simple fact that they need to be attached to a computer that’s permanently on while the machines are running.

In the case of the SRM-20 CNC this is understandable - as you’d need to have control over the machine while it’s running at first. That said, once you’ve got the hang of things, it’d be nice to be able to disconnect and have it running on its own.

On the 3D printing front, it really is odd that this isn’t possible, particularly when you consider that the system is essentially flashing a series of PNG or similar files through a projector. That said, the computing requirements aren’t too heavy, so an older standard PC should do the trick for both.

In terms of costs, we’re looking at around £7,998 for both. As you’d expect, that’s comparable to buying similar devices separately.

In terms of costs, on the 3D print side, you’re looking at resins and built trays. They come in at £64.99 for 350g of the resin and £99 for the resin trays (remember, you get two bites at that particular cherry by flipping it around).

On the CNC side, you’re looking at materials (which can vary) and, of course, cutters. The machine is supplied with a 3mm ball nose, but you’ll soon find your collection growing.

The spindle unit, while rated for 1,000 hours, will eventually need replacing. The Spindle motor is rated for 2,000 hours, so you’ll need to plan on one spindle unit and one spindle motor (which includes the spindle unit) every 2,000 hour of cutting and they come in at around £270 for the lot.

We’ve also included a handy shopping list (see below) to give you an idea of costs and ancillaries that might be useful.

Ultimately, it seems strange to look at two very different production methods in one review - after all, you wouldn’t want the machines running alongside each other. Seriously, the dust, while contained in the SRM-20, is a pain to clean out and you don’t want that anywhere near the 3D printer.

But when you consider the nature of many design offi ces’ prototyping requirements, it makes perfect sense. Many are currently debating 3D print vs. CNC.

What if you could have both, running off one machine in the corner of your office. Considering that you’re looking at two key prototype production methods, which vary greatly, but cover all those bases, for just a shade under £8,000, they represent a solid investment.

MonoFab shopping list

UV tool steriliser (~£40): As we discovered in previous tests, a UV tool steriliser, as used in beauty salons, is an excellent option for post curing your models quickly.Ultrasonic Parts Washer (~£80): We discovered this one recently. A small scale ultrasonic parts washer, filled with 70/30 IPA/Water gives your parts a good clean and helps with curing.405nm laser pointer(~£6): Whether you’re joining larger builds or fixing parts in place, a decent method is to use a UV laser pointer to cure a little resin to solidify facts from support break away.Isoprophyl Alcohol (~£5 per litre):Used to dissolve any excess resin. Get hold of 5 litres as a start. Keep it clean and you’ll get nice clean prints as a result.Microfibre cloths: These are essential for cleaning the base of the resin tray to keep your builds nice and crisp.Non-powdered gloves: Get them, wear them.Henry the Vacuum Cleaner (~ £99):He’s cheerful, he’s reliable and he’s got a face on him. He’ll also work unlike the dust buster type product we initially used.

The latest BenQ monitor is SolidWorks certified and boasts a UHD display

Designed to meet the rising demands for large-sized viewing and ultra-high definition, BenQ’s latest BL3201PT monitor boasts a 32” 4K2K display built with its IPS technology for precise color rendition and over 300 per cent working space.

Its dual-aspect ratio is designed for professional designers accustomed to working with a square monitor, with the feature allowing the user to work with nearly two 19” displays by dividing a 32” BL Series monitor screen in half, or two 4:3 or 5:4 viewing areas – which can be further resized from 19”S to 30”W in size using the Display Mode feature.

Ford’s new foldable electric bicycle collection, designed to compliment and fit within its more typical four-door range

Two new foldable electric bikes have been launched by automotive giant Ford as it looks to solve the problem of increasing gridlock on city streets.

The MoDe:Me and MoDe:Pro are both prototypes designed to be folded up and stored in the back of more typical four-wheel Ford vehicles, allowing users to park in easier to access parts of town before riding the rest of the distance.

The Mobile World Congress is an unusual place for hardware launches outside of the usual smartphones and pocketable gadgets, but Ford has used the event to launch the bikes - one for personal use, the other a larger goods bike for deliveries - and its corresponding MoDe:Link iPhone app.

Graduates from Renishaw’s Applications Academy are being snapped up by the global engineering firm as fast as they can complete the training

In 2010, Renishaw established a specialised internal training scheme in response to a growing demand for applications engineers.

This Applications Academy, which is a 21 month course and based at Renishaw’s headquarters in Gloucestershire, has proven popular with the company doubling its intake of graduates last year. So far 35 candidates have graduated from the Academy and have been snapped up into a number of divisions within the company.

The Applications Academy programme equips graduates with an understanding of engineering principles, manufacturing processes, methods and techniques, as well as communication and business skills.

]]>Smooth ridetag:develop3d.com,2015:profiles/8.54862015-03-02T12:28:54Z2015-03-02T14:02:55ZDEVELOP3DChampion Motorsport is putting its track prowess into road-going Porsches, using 3D printing to smooth the airflow within its carbon fibre parts

Turning a legacy of track victories into successful road going business is historically the way to motoring success. From Ferrari to McLaren, it’s a well-worn route that has served many well.

Porsche 997 Turbo with FDM-enabled components

Champion Motorsport’s racing legacy includes a win at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and five straight American Le Mans Series LMP1 championships: two as a private team and three as an Audi Sport North America factory team.

With the trophy cabinet suitably stocked, the team is now using its racetrack knowledge to develop and manufacture aftermarket performance upgrade parts for sports cars.

Producing the likes of exhausts, wheels and turbochargers, boosting power levels and shaving off weight, the parts increase the car’s abilities.

By constructing the duct from carbon fibre, Champion was able to increase the duct’s interior dimensions while keeping the outer diameter at factory specifications. The result is better airflow through the duct, leading to improved engine performance.

The new design is also lighter than the original part, which further enhances performance.

“The performance of the vehicle depends on a smooth internal surface while the customer expects a beautiful external surface. The part also needs to be very strong to last the life of the vehicle.”

Achieving a smooth interior and exterior surface finish with tubular composite components is almost impossible using conventional tooling.

If the part is moulded in a single piece, the interior core can be trapped inside the tube, unless it is made of a material that can later be washed away like a sacrificial sand core.

Composite turbo inlet duct (black) made with FDM soluble core (white)

An alternative is to mould the tube in two halves, the disadvantage of this being that the two halves must be bonded together after moulding, resulting in a part not as strong as one with single-piece construction.

In both cases, a good surface finish is only obtained on one side of the part.

Over time, Champion tried different methods for producing inlet ducts but was unable to attain a seam-free part with high quality surface finish on both the outer and inner surfaces.

Already using a Fortus 3D printer to make conceptual and functional FDM prototypes during the design process, the idea struck to try using it to make soluble cores for moulds.

After some tests, they perfected the technique; making its ducts in a single piece by laying up carbon fibre on an FDM printed soluble core.

An excellent external surface finish was achieved by combining the soluble core with an external clamshell mould, while the core can be easily dissolved away in a solution bath after the carbon fibre resin was cured.

This solution for the turbo inlet ducts has also been transferred to a number of other tubes and pipes for the Porsche engine — not only improving the performance of the part, but the production speed by providing a reliable automated process.

Complex composite ducts made from FDM soluble cores

“We substantially improved the quality of our carbon fibre turbo inlet ducts and other aftermarket parts by making them with FDM soluble cores,” says Lyew. “It’s now possible to mould the inlet duct in a single piece that is much stronger than parts produced by bonding.

“Every FDM soluble core is exactly the same so it’s easy to maintain the internal finish of the duct as well.”

By using 3D printing to produce the soluble cores, Champion has also opened up a new world of design possibilities, knocking away the barriers that have traditionally got in the way of improving its design and manufacturing capabilities.Stratasys.com

]]>What’s the use of a SolidWorks User Group? It turns out: rather a lottag:develop3d.com,2015:blog/3.54822015-02-27T16:17:09Z2015-03-02T10:20:10ZDEVELOP3D

At SolidWorks World, this was a literal ‘badge of honour’

While covering SolidWorks World (SWW) this year, we were once again fixated on the tribes of loyal users coming together to listen, learn, and party - the SolidWorks User Groups.

By far and away the strongest networks exist in the US - at SWW our stiff British upper-lips went harder than a woodpecker’s at the sound of US attendees openly cheering the Top Ten Ideas list - but there are new networks popping up across the UK.

Yet with so many resources now available online, what can members expect to get from these groups? We set out to find out more from SolidWorks User Group leaders across three continents - here are their answers:

Optistruct is aiming at the high-end 3D printing market with its topology and optimisation tools

With new solver capabilities, Altair’s OptiStruct topology optimisation software is aiming at the high-end 3D printing market to help print the most optimal and structurally efficient products.

Its eye-catching capabilities for 3D printing lie in its ability to manufacture hollow shapes with complex external geometry using tiny cells known as lattice structures.

OptiStruct now extends topology optimisation to assist in the efficient blending of solid-lattice structures with smooth transitional material volume, while lattice performance can be studied under tension, compression, shear, flexion, torsion, and fatigue life.

]]>Simulation workshop #7: FEA + testingtag:develop3d.com,2015:comment/9.54832015-02-27T09:07:37Z2015-02-27T09:07:38ZDEVELOP3DFEA can tell us many things, but integrated test and simulation programs are the only way to effectively develop products, writes Laurence Marks

I thought I’d round off this series of articles with a piece on actually making simulation work in reality. Too many people think that simulation techniques are about pushing an ‘improve my design’ button, but simulation software doesn’t just radiate goodness like some form of information age fairy godmother.

So far we’ve looked at various approaches and techniques, which can be used to represent what happens to components and systems when they are used. And for all the incredible benefits, all these have one huge shortcoming.

{fig.1} In conceptual terms what an FEA model is all about: a continuous body is represented by a series of spring stiffnesses, and where these spring stiffnesses connect to each other we can calculate deflections

They are only as good and relevant as the input data, assumptions, guesses and prejudices which are their very DNA.

In fact it has been said (well I think it has been said, but as usual Google has failed to come up with the goods) that the only function of a numerical model is to reinforce the prejudices of the person that created it.

We’ll concentrate on finite element models for a while.

So the first useful thing we can do is to try and visualise what an FEA model actually is. { fig.1} shows in conceptual terms what an FEA model is all about.

A continuous body is represented by a series of spring stiffnesses, and where these spring stiffnesses connect to each other we can calculate deflections.

These calculation points are the only places in the model where we can apply loads and fixings. We calculate stresses by working out what has happened to the small sub-regions bounded by the springs stiffnesses.

The effectiveness of the process is governed by how well the springs represent the structure, how well our assessment of the restraints represents how the structure is actually fixed, and how well we’ve interpreted the loads If we focus more closely on the springs we can learn a lot.

Robert Hooke, the great unsung hero of English technology, said that the deflection of a spring was proportional to its stiffness and the load applied to it. And at a time when witches were still being burned at the stake, that was pretty impressive. But many of the materials we engineer with simply don’t obey that law – not that on-line material databases acknowledge that very often. In fact much of the information is contradictory.

Use one piece of information and you’ll get one answer, use another piece and you’ll get a very different one. So you need enough of a material definition to get a sufficiently accurate answer, but you don’t want a PhD.

But the 64 million dollar question is “how do you know that your model is rigorous enough?” We’ll leave that there for the moment and move on.

Anyone who read the Bob Johnson series of articles in DEVELOP3D will be aware of the importance of decently defined restraints. He’s evangelical about it, and for good reason. It’s pretty important. But again, even if you follow all the best advice on the subject, how do you know that you’re constraints nail it?

Hopefully a picture is forming. A finite element model is built up using a series of descriptions – geometry, material, loads, restraint, interfaces, physics etc, etc. And each one required an understanding, interpretation or description of what was happening in the real world – or a lucky guess at what was going on in the real world. Obviously some scenarios are easier to interpret than others.

{fig.2} Simulia Living Heart model: for all its impressive behaviour the model only makes sense in the context of a team of engineers and medics working together

But a series of intelligent guesses at what could be going on, is, after a good deal of number crunching, transformed into what are often staggeringly impressive graphics.

In this respect CFD beats FEA hands down. And those graphics are often pretty convincing, as well as being just pretty. And at this stage you either believe those results to be the single version of the truth, or you chose the path of cynicism.

Only one makes sense if you think about the inputs, but you’d be surprised how tough it is to convince some of our customers that the results are anything other than 100% definitive.

So you need some form of stake in the ground, or reference point, to provide something to compare the simulation results to. And that has to be the performance or behaviour of an actual thing. In the real world. Measured and quantified. Which means a good old fashioned test.

The process of making the simulation model behave like the test is a real learning experience, and the way in which the engineer and designer learns what really makes the thing tick; what and what isn’t important. It’s the IP of the design from a functionality point of view.

Not surprising then that the NDA [Non Disclosure Agreement] is common currency at FEA consultancy companies.

I’d always thought about rounding off this series with a piece on the Simulia Living Heart model. This is a seriously advanced model, which needs the power of both Abaqus and a multiprocessor machine to run. But the point is that for all its impressive behaviour the model only makes sense in the context of a team of engineers and medics working together.

Anyone who has ever worked in a team which is made up of doctors and engineers will appreciate that critical review and a focus on delivering useful data is never far from the top of the medical agenda. Doctors, in my experience, seem largely immune to the blinding effects of high-level graphics.

About 10 years ago I had an idea, which I am now, depressingly, seeing being presented at conferences. Rapid prototyping is revolutionising small batch production of parts. So why can’t RP techniques be used to accelerate product design by accelerating the
progress around the simulation test loop?

Surely this is a critical way ahead – there are many, many issues which need to be solved, but I’m pretty sure they can be, with the net result that product development cycles can be further reduced.

So what’s my elevator pitch here? Simply that simulation only makes sense in a world where there is, or has been, sufficient testing.

Perhaps in some silver suited future, where we can model every atom and molecule of a structure, we won’t need testing, but now integrated test and simulation programs are the only way to develop products. And before anybody else does I’ll mention the no test programs, which, where they are a reality, are only that because they have built on years and years of test data already in the vault.

We need to accept that, at the moment, simulation delivers better testing of better products, which we understand more. That has to be better than a simple “make it better button”.

The 1U machine can now be powered by up to two Intel Xeon E5 2600 v3 series processors with ten, twelve or fourteen cores.

It can host up to 512GB of ECC memory per system and can be configured from 2 to over 200 render nodes to suit rendering projects and studios of any size.

]]>DEVELOP3D LIVE 2015 previewtag:develop3d.com,2015:features/2.54812015-02-26T14:05:50Z2015-02-26T14:05:51ZDEVELOP3DWith more exhibitors than ever before and a top drawer conference programme DEVELOP3D LIVE on 26 March looks set to be our most exciting event yet

We have brand new products to see, free training, graphics cards and workstation competition prizes. The conference features four tracks of speakers, hand picked by the DEVELOP3D editorial team, with multiple exhibition spaces, special technology break out areas and tours of the Warwick Manufacturing Group’s (WMG’s) impressive engineering facilities.

The event is free to attend, we provide lunch and coffee/tea at regular intervals, and we hope you enjoy celebrating the best in product design and engineering.

Conference

Throughout the year we meet and visit many innovative designers and engage with all the key design tool developers.

DEVELOP3D LIVE enables us to bring our written stories to life for one day. With four simultaneous tracks, we have 34 speakers talking on a wide variety of design-related topics: conceptual, automotive, aerospace, product, analysis, virtual/augmented reality, design tools and professional 3D printing.

Product development tech

These are interesting times in the design software market, with many established desktop products available we are beginning to see a number of new generation design tools come to market, offering innovative connected modelling tools with collaboration capabilities. Looking forward, how should designers prepare for the next generation of tools?

DEVELOP3D LIVE will feature a major launch of a new CAD system and presentations on the next generation of tools.

Product design & engineering

This year we have doubled down on product designers and engineers with two tracks covering a wide range of specialist areas.

There will also be hands on training sessions with Autodesk Fusion and the brand new Onshape Pro from the original SolidWorks team.

WMG

The Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) is on-site at the Warwick University campus and offers UK firms the opportunity to carry out research or assist in solving design and production problems.

Tour places are limited to three groups of 20 on the day, so be sure to book your slot when you arrive on-site, at registration.

Accomodation

We realise that many of you travel great distances to attend the show. With registration opening at 8:00 am on Thursday 26 March, and the event starting promptly at 9.00 am, we are pleased to offer quality affordable bed and breakfast accommodation on-site on Wednesday 25 March.

Cost is £66 inc VAT and includes a full English breakfast, free Wi-Fi and parking. Book your room directly at tinyurl.com/D3D-accom (conference registration also required — see below).

CLAIM YOU FREE TICKET
We look forward to welcoming you to DEVELOP3D LIVE at Warwick Arts Centre, CV4 7AL on Thursday 26 March

Andy Claughton - Ben Ainslie Racing

Ben Ainslie Racing (BAR) was conceived in 2011 by four times Olympic gold medalist and 34th America’s Cup winner, Sir Ben Ainslie, with the long-term aim of challenging for Britain and bringing the America’s Cup back home to where it all began in 1851.

Britain’s Andy Claughton is one of the world’s most accomplished and experienced America’s Cup designers, having been involved with the competition since 1983. As Technical Director of Ben Ainslie Racing, Andy will coordinate a team of designers and engineers as they design, build and test the prototype and final boats that will challenge for the 35th America’s Cup.

The future of CAD

Autodesk CEO Carl Bass, and SolidWorks CEO Gian Paolo Bassi

With embryonic ‘next generation’ modelling tools coming to market and an increasing number of cloud-based services and applications, designers need to understand their implications on modelling, simulation and fabrication.

As these new products are introduced initially as ‘companion’ seats, does this mean the tools we have invested in and completely rely on will soon be legacy systems?

DEVELOP3D LIVE will bring all the major CAD tool developers under one roof to explain how these new capabilities will, both now and in the future, improve on the current tools and how we can manage this transition.

With a high-ranking line-up of executives, expect to hear the latest on developments concerning SolidWorks, PTC Creo, Autodesk Inventor and Fusion, Siemens Solid Edge and NX and more. We also welcome Jon Hirschtick, founder of SolidWorks, to launch a brand new cloud-based modeller, Onshape.

Onshape chairman Jon Hirschtick

Richard Varvill - Reaction Engines

Reaction Engines conducts research into space propulsion systems, centred on the development of the Skylon re-usable SSTO spaceplane, using its own Sabre engine design.

The company has also developed the A2 passenger plane concept, capable of flying non stop, halfway around the world at hypersonic speed (Mach 5+).

Richard Varvill is Technical director and head designer and is currently responsible for the technical aspects of Skylon and the Sabre engine. He is one of the founding directors along with Alan Bond and John Scott-Scott.

Dominic Wilcox - Artist + inventor + designer

Dominic Wilcox works between the worlds of art, design, craft and technology to create innovative and thought provoking objects.

Recent projects include the design of a pair of shoes with inbuilt GPS to guide the wearer home, a Binaudios device to listen to the sounds of a city, a race against a 3D printer at the V&A and a stained glass driverless car of the future.

In 2009 he started a Webby award nominated blog called Variations on Normal where he shows his sketchbook inventions and observations. He has received commissions from a diverse range of organisations such as Paul Smith, Selfridges, The V&A museum, BMW Mini and Jaffa Cakes.

RML

With a long and esteemed history in endurance, rallying, and touring car motorsport, DEVELOP3D LIVE is proud to have Ron Hartvelt, Director of Motorsport at RML (Ray Matlock Ltd) talk at the conference.

Having worked with Seat, Chevrolet, Vauxhaul and Nissan, RML’s engineering team develops championship winning racecars.

RML recently developed a new engine on behalf of Nissan for the unique Nissan DeltaWing. RML, as Nissan’s Motorsport Partner, ran the car and provided engineering and technical support at Le Mans 24 hours and Petit Le Mans.

A fantastic lineup of speakers

Mark Shayler of Ape, and Hutch Hutchinson of Vertu

As usual DEVELOP3D LIVE will have a plethora of designers, engineers and industry specialists. This year we have three key areas: Product Design, Make / Fabricate and Start-up.

We have doubled down on product design with a wide range of innovative practitioners telling us their experiences with technology, fabrication and clients.

Make/Fabricate is the track for those interested in rapid prototyping, 3D printing and taking design from art to part. We have the guys from MakerCafe,

FBFX, Inition and Granger and Worrall to name but a few, and also some exciting exclusives from Autodesk and HP on its 3D printers.

UCL’s Mona Hess, and Mark Sanders of MAS Design

We have two star designers making a return to the stage: Mark Sanders of MAS design (Strida folding bike, one touch can opener) and Mark Shayler of Ape, who doesn’t mince his words when it comes to eco-design. Chris Cheung from the Foundry will be on hand to divulge the latest in conceptual design.

We also have Hutch Hutchison from Vertu luxury phones and presentations on jewellery design, scanning and much more.

Workstation tech

HP Z640

There will be a massive array of workstation technologies on show including the latest AMD FirePro GPUs, which can handle heavy duty 3D graphics and compute tasks on a single card, plus a whole range of new workstations based on Intel’s Xeon E5-2600 v3 series CPUs.

HP will be highlighting its new Z workstations including the HP ZBook 15u Workstation Ultrabook.

Lenovo will be showing off its shiny new ThinkStation P Series desktops and ThinkPad mobile workstations, while Fujitsu and Dell will present their respective Celsius and Precision workstation families.

Specialist manufacturer Scan will demo its overclocked workstations while 3Dconnexion will present its CAD-focused 2D and 3D mice.

3D printing

The Mark One 3D printer can reinforce parts with carbon fibre

DEVELOP3D LIVE will play host to its biggest ever range of 3D printing technologies including Blueprinter’s low-cost sintering tech, Formlabs stereolithography machine, and Markforged’s Mark One, which can reinforce parts with carbon fibre.

Emco Education will highlight 3D Systems’ range of printers. CDG will have live demos of the ProJet 1200 micro-SLA 3D printer and other machines. Laser Lines and Tri-Tech 3D will both showcase the full range of Stratasys 3D printers.

Meanwhile, Hobs Studio, Malcolm Nicholls Limited (MNL), Ogle Models and Prototypes and Proto Labs will all be on hand to promote a wide range of 3D printing and prototyping services.

CAD/CAM

SolidWork Industrial Design

CAD software will be in abundance on the exhibition floor with demonstrations of leading product development software including Autodesk Fusion, Siemens PLM Software NX and Solid Edge, PTC Creo, and SolidWorks Industrial Designer.

Onshape, a next generation, cloudbased CAD tool, founded by the original SolidWorks team, will also be given plenty of floor time, as well as EPLAN for electrical engineering, DriveWorks for design automation, ITI TranscenData for CAD data exchange and solidThinking for industrial design and developing structurally effi cient concepts.

There will also be a wide range of manufacturing technologies from Delcam, Vero and Tebis, including tooling design, reverse engineering, 5-axis machining, wire EDM and others.

Simulation

DS Simulia Abaqus

There will be a wide variety of Finite Element Analysis (FEA), Computational Fluid Dynamics software (CFD) and multiphysics simulation technologies on display.

FlowHD will be showing meshless XFlow CFD technology, Strategic Simulation & Analysis (SSA), a reseller for the DS SIMULIA product range, will be promoting its training and consulting services, and NAFEMS the independent, not-for-profit, CAE association, will be on hand for best practice advice.

More exciting tech

Faro Focus3D X330 Laser Scanner

For quality inspection and organic modelling, CDG will have live product demonstrations of Geomagic Capture and Geomagic Sculpt.

Delcam’s PowerINSPECT will also be on show for comparison of parts, prototypes and tooling against CAD data.

Faro will exhibit its portable Faro Arm Edge with LLP and Focus3D X330 Laser Scanner, while Physical Digital will be promoting its non-contact 3D scanning technology.

For data management, CSI will be on hand to discuss DesignDataManager (DDM), while Kenesto will demo its cloudbased, collaborative solution.

Holding hands and skipping off into the night together, 3D Systems has partnered up with a new European reseller in the form of Canon

Canon Europe has announced its distribution agreement with 3D Systems to market, sell and support 3D Systems’ professional hardware from the beginning of March.

The deal includes selling the ProJet 1200, 3500 series, 4500, 6000 and 7000 in the UK and Ireland, with a view to rolling out across Europe.

Jeppe Frandsen, head of production printing group, Canon Europe, said: “At Canon we’re continually assessing new market opportunities where we believe we can make a difference to our customers. It’s clear that, because of the potential business benefits it can deliver, 3D printing is one such opportunity.

‘Fashion avatars’ bring the season’s key trends to life with motion tracking technology, then try to flog you a dress

To celebrate the launch of spring/summer fashion collections, shopping mall maestros Westfield will partner with London technology facilitators Inition to let visitors experience the products through virtual reality and avatars.

Future Fashion comes as a result of more shoppers being eager to explore new ‘fashion technologies’ and are intrigued by new virtual ways to experience it - 52 per cent would use Augmented Reality in a retail environment and 57 per cent are tempted by Virtual Mirrors.

This all points toward more digital 3D content creation in an industry that has lagged far behind more typical product design, and the problems of simulating material properties, accurate lighting, realtime rendering and motion capture.